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Monday, June 24, 2013

I had a nice weekend. It was really the first weekend in the last two weeks that I have felt pretty good. I thrifted with my Mom on Saturday (you can check out Thrift Store Saturday HERE.)

That afternoon we went to the cheap movie theatre in our town (Which used to be the good movie theatre when I was a kid) and saw the movie 42about Jackie Robinson and how he broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball. It was a great movie. I was moved, I cried, I was inspired. I love movies like that.

Since I was feeling so good Saturday I may have overdone it a bit and I missed church Sunday morning :( I just spent the day relaxing. We had a massive storm, so it was nice to just stay inside, relax and enjoy the rain.

(Sorry, I evidently do not know how to take rain pictures...note to self, work on that!)

Since I 've had quite a bit of time lately to "relax" I decided to watch the first and second season of Once Upon A Time. I actually only meant to watch the first season, but after that I was hooked. Now I have to wait until the fall of 2013 for it to come back. Boo. :(

I didn't realize that I was sad I was about the demise of Twinkies until I was so excited to hear that they will be returning! Did you hear that too? I will be keeping my eyes peeled for their comeback! Bad news for my weight loss, but it it does make me happy! (If really for no other reason but to make these!)

All and all it was a nice weekend. I have worked on, completed and started several crafts. (I don't know about you but I always have a few crafts in progress and a few ideas in my head.) I will be back to share at least one of those crafts (which ever gets finished first; eeny, meeny, miny, moe) Lol on Thursday.

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Hello Friends! I am back today with something I am calling "Thrift Store Saturday." I have been thrifting for ages, way before thrifting was cool. Seriously, 20 years ago (ack, can I really be that old? Don't answer that! Lol) I thrifted almost all of the furniture for my first apartment. I still have my $60 table and chairs. I just can't seem to part with them. That was a great investment for 18 year old me. ☺

Almost every Saturday my Mom and I have coffee and go thrift shopping. It is a sweet tradition we started a few years back, and have continued. It is so nice to have that time with my Mom each week, and I really look forward to it. When my sister visits from Illinois we bring her along too!

I decided to start this weekly thrift store post after Sara atIt's Good to be Queen started her "Thrifted Thursday" posts. I sent sweet Sara an e-mail, told her about Mom & my thrift store Saturdays, and asked if she minded if I did this post. She is such a sweetheart; she thanked me for asking her and told me to go for it! She also told me she was starting a "thrifty link party" Yay!! I love parties!☺

If you have never read Sara's blog you really should. She is one of those people that you just know you would love to be friends with in real life. She has super cute kids, a heart for Jesus & great eye for vintage/thrift. I was so super excited when she e-mailed me back, I adore her! ☺

So now I have babbled on and on ( um, I tend to do that in real life too...if you are my real life friend I know you are shaking your head right now, "yes, yes, she does that." Lol ☺) it is time to show you my thrift finds for the week.

Let's start with these colorful baking dishes. I loved the colors and the sizes. You can see on the picture how much these set me back, $4.00. Score!

Next I found this super cute, seventies looking basket for a quarter. I plan on using it somewhere in my ever-evolving craft room. I love it.♥

Speaking of quarter finds, I found this cute wicker letter holder. It is really sturdy and a nice size. I haven't decided what to do with it yet, but I will think of something soon!

I thrift most of my clothes anymore, especially since I have started losing weight. I can't justify spending a lot on something I am only going to wear a month or so. It pains me to buy retail anymore. My favorite clothing find recently was this skirt.

I took it home, washed it and wore it to work already! I love the detail on it.

I try to stay within a budget every week. Sometimes I am right on budget and sometimes I go over. On rare occasion I am under, but that is very, very rare. Lol ☺My budget for this particular week was $5 and I spent a total of $6. Not too bad. ☺

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Hello Friends! Today I am going to show you a cute little sign I made... ☺

I was at my local Dollar Tree when I picked up this pretty vinyl. I love this saying: Everyday is a gift. I truly believe that, so I wanted to make a sign to put in my bedroom so that every morning I will see it and have it serve as a reminder that each day is a gift from God.

Everyday is a gift has had a special meaning to me after the last week. I have been so sick; like really, really sick. I missed three days of work, and the whole weekend. I went to the doctor (which means I was really sick, I'm a little stubborn like that.) I am feeling better, but I underestimated how much energy just everything takes; getting ready for work, walking in the building, working...I am exhausted. I hope to be back to 100% soon, but regardless, every single day I am alive is a gift, and am grateful for it.

So back to my sign. I thought I was just going to paint it on a piece of wood, but when I was at Hobby Lobby I found this sign, with hardware attached on back for half off and it was exactly the right size, so I went with it. For less than $3 I took it home and got started.

Now here is where I made a mistake. I should have primed it. I don't know why I didn't. I obviously wasn't thinking. Instead I started painting with this hot pink paint (Modest Magenta-I love that name!) This is the same kind of tester I used in my welcome sign(HERE)

It took five coats of paint to get it a good color.

Once I had the shade of pink I wanted I placed the $1 vinyl sticker on the sign, then I hung it above my closet door.

I like it. ☺ My whole sign cost around $5. I like when things turn out cheap and like I imagined in my head. ☺

So, things got a bit mixed up because I've been sick, but I have decided to start a regular posting schedule as follows:

I may also do posts at other times, but I am going to make a concerted effort to post three times a week with this format. I hope that you will consider joining me by becoming a regular reader of This Little Light. You can follow me here on the blog, by e-mail or here on Facebook . I am just happy to have you here.

I will be back Thursday with something! Lol (Can you tell I am flying by the seat of my pants this week?) See you soon friends! ☺Linking this project up at these great parties:

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

I know that Monday is not everyone's favorite day of the week, and it is definitely not mine either, but I also do not hate it. What I like about Monday is that it is a fresh start to a week. (Yes, I know the week officially starts on Sunday...just work with me here...) I've decided to start a regular Monday post called "Monday Musings." This weekly post will just be a random hodge-podge (not to be confused with Mod-Podge, which I am a fan of) of whatever I want it to be about on any given Monday.☺So sit back and enjoy my Monday Musings... (disclaimer-I was not feeling very well last night (Monday) so I didn't get this blog post finished...I know it's not Monday... oh well, maybe I should have re-named this Tuesday Tales...lol ☺)

So, to address the elephant in the room...yes, I have been gone from blogging for a few months. I took a little break without really meaning to and then it just turned into a big break. I may have very well lost every follower (ok, not everyone, I know your still here Mom ♥) but if you are still here, I'm grateful, and I love you. The end.

So, the last few months have been very busy; my sweet Nana (you can read about her HERE, HERE &HERE ) has had a decline in her health and after her last stint in the hospital (after a mild heart attack and a nasty fall) it was necessary for her to no longer live alone. I helped my Mom & Dad fix up their extra bedroom and Nana moved in with them. It has been hard, and it has been very emotional, but I am still so thankful to have my grandma with us. My parents are amazing, generous people. I have such an awesome, amazing family. Blessed, I am.

Nana and her five great-granddaughters on Mother's Day 2013

Speaking of family...in April, we welcomed my new, sweet niece, Miss G, to our family. (You can read about her sisters, Miss A, Miss K & Miss THERE ) Yes, that makes four, FOUR, girls for my sister's family! I'm such a slacker over here with one...☺ Welcome to the world Miss G, I know God has a great plan for your life and I am so happy to be your Aunt!☺

(Isn't she a doll!☺)

I joined Weight Watchers in January, and I am happy to report I have lost about 30 lbs so far! I feel fantastic, and I am looking at reaching my goal weight (about another 30 lbs) by my birthday in November. It's do-able, and I am motivated!☺

Now for some real random weirdness...do you know they make gummy vitamins?? I recently found out I was Vitamin D deficient, and my doctor also got onto me about not taking a multi-vitamin, so I high-tailed it to the store to look at my vitamin options... Gummies...go figure. For the first time in my life I am having no problems taking my vitamins. I really hope by the time I have to take as much medicine as poor Nana that every medicine is a gummy. ☺

So, I have been busy thrifting & creating and I can't wait to show you some of the things I have snagged & things I have created. I will be back Thursday with my latest project...here's a hint...

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Hello friends! I hope everyone is having a fabulous start to summer! I am back to share a cute before and after project that I whipped up to bring a little sunshine to my front porch area.

I picked up this sign while thrifting. Yes, that is a $.50 sticker. Score! I took advantage of one of our few summer days without rain and got started on my project.

I started by giving the sign a good sanding and followed with a coat of primer.

I followed the coat of primer with two coats of white spray paint.

When I went outside to check on the paint, I caught two large rabbits sitting on my makeshift tarp (hey when you get a sunny day when all you have had is rain for what seems like weeks, you use what you have...plastic tablecloth anyone?) :) Anyhoo...rabbits...they were huge! I caught one with my camera as it was running away.

After the paint dried, I moved inside to paint the trim and the letters. I found this cute little tester in a yellow color at my local Wal-Mart for less than $3. I only needed a little bit, so this was perfect, it even includes the brush!(Yes, I am easily impressed!) :)

I like it. I had a piece of lattice in the garage. Why you ask? Good question. If I knew I'd tell you. :) I thrifted the lady bug rock for $ .50 (that seems to be my magic number!) and I splurged and added that cute little gnome.

I love how $ .50, a vision and some paint can take something bla and make it beautiful.